Sergio Urquiza believes there is no finer-tasting meat in the world than the beef cooked by the gauchos of South America. These nomadic cow punchers, horsemen and fighters speared their meat on swords, turned them on a spit over a charcoal fire and brought them to the diners to choose their favorite cuts, slicing them on to their dishes.

There are several very popular chain Brazilian restaurants in downtown Chicago that feature this kind of cooking and serving—called Rodizio—advertising their “Churrascaria.” There is a very good Argentinean restaurant on Southport (Tango Sur) and a place popular with Argentines on Elston (Ñ), but my Argentinean friend Maria Sonduval brought me to Sergio’s Meyer’s Castle, in Dyer, Indiana.

When you take that thirty-minute drive, you will enter the grounds of the replica of a Scottish castle, and be driven to the restaurant on top of the highest hill in sight. Your reservation noted, you will be escorted to your table and presented with a choice of the very best of Argentine cuisine. Read the rest of this entry »